Samsung Galaxy S26 / Samsung Galaxy A56 5G (SM-A566B)

Samsung varies the processor by market: the US, China and Japan versions use the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy. This entry covers the Exynos 2600 SM-S942B version.

The viewable area is smaller than the rectangular measurement because of the corners and camera hole.

120 Hz makes scrolling smoother; 1,200 nits is reached in High Brightness Mode, which switches on automatically in sunlight. Allowing for the rounded corners, the visible area is 6.5 inches.

The panel lowers its rate to match the content, slowing down on static images to save power and rising to 120 Hz for scrolling and games.

This is Samsung's peak figure, not a brightness held across the full screen.

Samsung says a larger vapor chamber than the previous generation spreads heat better in games and multitasking.

Samsung says this GPU supports hardware ray tracing and is up to 50% faster at it than its predecessor.

Samsung states up to 29% better heat dissipation for the S26; this is a figure from the maker's own testing.

Usable space is lower than the total because of preloaded software. Options vary by country and carrier.

The 2x optical-quality zoom uses the centre of the main camera's Adaptive Pixel sensor; it is not a separate lens.

Samsung quotes up to 30 hours of video playback; the typical figure was measured by a third-party lab to IEC 61960.

The figure was measured from 0% with a 25 W Samsung adapter and 3 A USB-C cable, screen off. The adapter and cable are sold separately.

PowerShare works only with certain Qi-compatible phones and wearables and may not work below 30% battery.

Wi-Fi 7 speeds need a Wi-Fi 7 router; 6 GHz use varies by country.

USB 3.2 Gen 1 carries up to 5 Gbit/s of data, which speeds up wired transfers of large video files to a computer.

Band support varies by market.

Weight may vary by country and configuration.

Water and dust resistance can decline over time with normal wear.

Glass on the back as well is uncommon in this class; Samsung notes the camera lens covers are not included.

With no card slot, storage cannot be expanded later, so the capacity choice matters for heavy photo and video use.

Optical stabilisation (OIS) is on the main camera only and reduces shake at night and in video. There is no telephoto camera; zoom is digital.

4K recording is limited to 30 fps; smoother video needs a drop to 1080p.

45 W speeds need a 45 W USB PD PPS adapter; lower-powered adapters take longer.

USB 2.0 is slower than USB 3 ports for large video transfers and has no video output.

A virtual proximity sensor uses software and other sensors rather than dedicated hardware to turn the screen off during calls.

This is no guarantee against seawater, pool water or pressurised water.

This is the longest support yet in the Galaxy A series; rollout timing can vary by country and carrier.

Knox Vault stores sensitive data such as PINs and passwords in an isolated hardware area separate from the main processor.